Mayor Jim Ireton Is Yet Another Empty Chair

Police Academy Director Moses started out today's ceremony by announcing the dignitaries representing each City and Police Department. Moses got to the City of Salisbury and announced Chief Duncan and then announced Mayor Jim Ireton, stopped, looked back and saw his empty chair and said, well, he's the really tiny man you can't see back there. Salisbury had the honor of enjoying 5 new recruits/officers graduate today and the Mayor was a no show. So much for respecting First Responders.

Sheriff Mike Lewis delivered one of the greatest speeches I've ever heard him give. The details and information he provided to these new Officers was to say the least, a massive wake up call. Maybe I can hire him as a guest speaker on my upcoming campaign trail? One thing is for sure, you'll never fall asleep when Sheriff Mike Lewis is speaking. 

Another AWOL person was County Executive Rick Pollitt. I just don't understand why the democratic leadership, (or the lack thereof) continues to do such things. I guess Jimmy wasn't invited to speak and if he was he didn't want to follow Sheriff Lewis, who would. 

Congratulations to these 21 new Officers. By the way, Bob Harris isn't 45, he's 48 years old and won the shooting portion of the academy by shooting a 100% throughout the academy. Look out criminals of Delmar, when Bob says FREEZE, you better FREEZE! Not that he can't easily catch you in a foot chase, just FREEZE when he tells you to. 

DWAYNE GRAY ALSO ARRESTED FOR CHILD ABUSE AND MORE

Dwayne Gray, a Willards Firefighter and Wicomico County school bus driver was also arrested for the following below. It's been reported this is related to the same person from Parkside the Wicomico County Sheriff's Deputy was recently arrested for. 

Court System: Circuit Court for Wicomico County - Criminal System
Case Number: 22K12000903
Title: State of Maryland vs Dwayne Thomas Gray
Case Type: IndictmentFiling Date:12/10/2012
Case Status: Open/Active
Defendant Information(Each Alias, Address, and Attorney for the Defendant is displayed)
Name: Gray, Dwayne Thomas

Race: Caucasian
Sex: MHeight:60'0"Weight:290DOB:10/29/1961

Address: 36871 Old Ocean City Road
City: WillardsState:MDZip Code:21874

Court Scheduling Information
Event Type: Initial AppearanceNotice Date:12/17/2012
Event Date: 01/04/2013Event Time:09:00 AM
Result: Result Date:

Charge and Disposition Information(Each Charge is listed separately. The disposition is listed below the Charge)

Charge No: 1CJIS Code:1 0173Statute Code:27.35C.(b).(1)

Charge Description: Child Abuse:Custodian

Offense Date From: 06/21/1997To: 06/20/1998
Arrest Tracking No: 13-7022-00050-0Citation:
Charge Amend No: 0Sentence Version:0Charge Class:F
Disposition
Plea: Plea Date:
Disposition: Disposition Date:Charge No: 2CJIS Code:2 1103Statute Code:27.463

Charge Description: Rape Second Degree

Offense Date From: 06/21/1997To: 06/20/1998
Arrest Tracking No: 13-7022-00050-0Citation:
Charge Amend No: 0Sentence Version:0Charge Class:F
Disposition
Plea: Plea Date:
Disposition: Disposition Date:Charge No: 3CJIS Code:2 3600Statute Code:27.464A

Charge Description: Sex Offense Second Degree

Offense Date From: 06/21/1997To: 06/20/1998
Arrest Tracking No: 13-7022-00050-0Citation:
Charge Amend No: 0Sentence Version:0Charge Class:F
Disposition
Plea: Plea Date:
Disposition: Disposition Date:Charge No: 4CJIS Code:3 3600Statute Code:27.464B

Charge Description: Sex Offense Third Degree

Offense Date From: 06/21/1997To: 06/20/1998
Arrest Tracking No: 13-7022-00050-0Citation:
Charge Amend No: 0Sentence Version:0Charge Class:F
Disposition
Plea: Plea Date:
Disposition: Disposition Date:

Related Person Information(Each Person related to the case other than the Defendant is shown)
Name:ABBA Bail Bonds
Party Type:Bond Remitter/Bondsman

Address:6506 Coastal Highway

City: Ocean CityState:MDZip Code:21842

Name:Seneca Insurance Company, Inc.
Party Type:Bond Remitter/Bondsman

Address:160 Water Street

City: New YorkState:NYZip Code:10038

Name:State Of Maryland
Party Type:PlaintiffCity: State:Zip Code:
Attorney(s) for the Related Person

Name: Correa, Esq, Pamela
Address: 102 Court Street
City: SalisburyState:MDZip Code:21803

Document Tracking(Each Document listed. Documents are listed in Motion No./Sequence No. order)
Doc No./Seq No.: 1/0
File Date: 12/10/2012Close Date:12/11/2012
Party Type: PlaintiffParty No.:1
Document Name: Attorney Appearance
Pamela M. Correa

Doc No./Seq No.: 3/0
File Date: 12/10/2012Close Date:
Party Type: PlaintiffParty No.:1
Document Name: Criminal Indictment
Doc No./Seq No.: 4/0
File Date: 12/10/2012Close Date:
Party Type: PlaintiffParty No.:1
Document Name: State's Disclosure/Request for Discovery
Doc No./Seq No.: 7/0
File Date: 12/11/2012Close Date:12/11/2012
Party Type: PlaintiffParty No.:1
Document Name: Line Correcting Defendant's Address on Indictment
Defendant's Correct Address is: 36871 Old Ocean City Road, Willards, MD, 21874

Doc No./Seq No.: 8/0
File Date: 12/11/2012Close Date:12/11/2012
Party Type: DefendantParty No.:1
Document Name: Warrant Issued-Criminal
(Warrant forwarded to State's Attorney for service)

Doc No./Seq No.: 9/0
File Date: 12/12/2012Close Date:12/12/2012
Document Name: Sheriff's Return - Warrant, Served 12/11/12
Doc No./Seq No.: 10/0
File Date: 12/12/2012Close Date:12/12/2012
Document Name: Sealed/Secret Status Removed on 12/12/12
Doc No./Seq No.: 11/0
File Date: 12/13/2012Close Date:12/13/2012
Document Name: Sheriff's Return - Warrant, Served 12/11/12


Doc No./Seq No.: 12/0
File Date: 12/17/2012Close Date:12/17/2012
Document Name: Criminal Assignment Notice
Doc No./Seq No.: 13/0
File Date: 12/14/2012Close Date:
Party Type: Bond Remitter/BondsmanParty No.:1
Document Name: Corporate Bond in the Amount of $100,000.00 Posted by ABBA Bail Bonds and
Release, filed. (Release Date - 12/11/12)

Doc No./Seq No.: 14/0
File Date: 12/17/2012Close Date:12/17/2012
Document Name: Certified Mail Receipt for 01/04/13
Doc No./Seq No.: 15/0
File Date: 12/17/2012Close Date:12/17/2012
Party Type: DefendantParty No.:1
Document Name: Summons Issued

SAMUEL L. JACKSON: GUNS, MOVIES, VIDEO GAMES HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH SANDY HOOK

 

Samuel L. Jackson, one of the stars of the new Quentin Tarantino-directed, Harvey Weinstein-produced Django Unchained, is speaking out against those who would restrict access to firearms or scale back violence in films in reaction to the massacre in Sandy Hook. Said Jackson:

"I don't think it's about more gun control. I grew up in the South with guns everywhere and we never shot anyone. This [shooting] is about people who aren't taught the value of life … I don’t think movies or video games have anything to do with it.”

Jackson added, “We need to stop deranged people from getting access to guns.”
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Comfort Dogs Visit Newtown, Conn. community

The residents of Newtown, Conn. are getting help from volunteers skilled in offering comfort. And they do it without saying a word.

The volunteers are the K-9 Comfort Dogs and they're part of the Lutheran Church Charities (LCC) headquartered in Addision, Ill.

As early as Saturday, Prince and Barnabas, two of the LCC K-9 Comfort dogs had arrived in Newtown, Conn. By Monday, up to 10 dogs and 14 handlers were working in the Newtown community.
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Stolen Alexandria Police Cruiser Found in Maryland

Alexandria Police completed the inventory of the recovered stolen cruiser found in Prince Georges County, Maryland and confirmed that the Remington 870 shotgun and a Panasonic Toughbook Mobile Computer were taken from the vehicle.

Additionally, detectives are investigating the theft of a second marked Alexandria Police Cruiser stolen from the 1500 block of Princess Street sometime in the overnight hours of Friday, December 14 and Saturday, December 15. The 2007 Ford Crown Victoria was last seen parked and locked at 11:30 p.m. Friday and noticed missing at 4:35 a.m. on Saturday. Shortly after the police cruiser was discovered missing, Metropolitan Police notified Alexandria Police of the location of the stolen cruiser in Northeast Washington, DC. The police cruiser was towed to Alexandria Police Headquarters for further processing. No police equipment was taken and all property was recovered from the cruiser.

Detectives are looking into the possibility that these two cases are related. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about either of these cases is asked to call the Criminal Investigations Section at 703.746.6711.

Detectives would like to remind witnesses they can remain anonymous.

White House Rejects Boehner 'Plan B' With Threat Of Tax Hikes Looming

The White House on Tuesday rejected House Speaker John Boehner's call for a fall-back option to avert the looming fiscal crisis, in a move the speaker's office said "defies common sense."

The feisty exchange came as both sides crept toward a possible middle ground in private talks. But underscoring the differences that remain, the White House resisted Boehner's bid to craft a "Plan B" just in case those talks fail to yield a compromise before a Jan. 1 deadline -- that's when taxes are set to rise on everyone, followed by a wave of spending cuts.

"Every income tax filer in America is going to pay higher rates come Jan. 1 unless Congress acts," Boehner said Tuesday morning, as he introduced his alternative plan. 
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BREAKING NEWS: Report On Benghazi Attack Critical Of State Dept.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accepts 29 suggestions to improve embassy security issued as part of a review board's report that faults Clinton's department for security failures and confirms no protest preceded the deadly attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
From Fox News

Cotton Candy Pro

Reminder: STATE HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING FOR US 113 IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS IN WORCESTER COUNTY

Both Projects Address Safety Concerns for Two Intersections in Snow Hill

(December 13, 2012) – The State Highway Administration (SHA) is holding a public meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 19 to discuss proposals to improve two intersections on US 113 in Snow Hill. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the Worcester County Commissioners’ board room on the first floor of the Worcester Government Building at North Washington Street.

SHA will provide an overview of a new intersection improvement concept that is currently being designed for the US 113/MD 365 (Public Landing Road) and US 113/MD 12 (Snow Hill Road) intersections. SHA expects design of the projects to be complete spring 2013. Both projects are funded through the design phase; additional funding will be needed for construction.

SHA engineers will present project descriptions of the planned improvements for both intersections. An SHA traffic study determined the construction of “J-turns,” a right turn to a safe u-turn point, are a safe option to prevent crashes at both locations.

For more information about the projects or meeting, citizens may call the SHA District One office at 410-677-4000 or toll-free at 800-825-4742.

Maryland now features FREE 511 traveler information! Call 511 or 1-855-GOMD511 or visit: www.md511.org for current travel information. Sign up to personalize travel route information through MY511 on the website. Remember to use 511 safely - Maryland law restricts hand-held mobile phone use and texting while driving. To visit SHA on Twitter go to http://www.Twitter.com/MDSHA. To visit SHA on Facebook go to http://www.Facebook.com/MarylandStateHighwayAdministration.

Senator 'Pleased' to Include $200 Million in Pork Projects in 'Sandy Bill'

Senator Mark Begich, a Democrat from Alaska, is "pleased" to include more than $200 million in pork spending in the Sandy legislation, a bill meant to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

The senator's office explains the request in a press release:

Alaskans hard hit by fisheries disasters in recent years would be eligible for federal assistance, if a comprehensive federal disaster funding bill released today gains final Congressional passage. U.S. Senator Mark Begich joined the other members of Alaska's congressional delegation in requesting the funding for Alaskans be included in the legislation, which also addresses the recent Superstorm Sandy which devastated the U.S. East Coast.

The measure proposes $150 million for the declared fisheries disasters in Alaska, New England and the Gulf of Mexico. Sen. Begich also requested that the bill includes funding to address the marine debris washing up on the coasts of western states from the Japan earthquake of March 2011. ...

The bill also included is $56.8 million for charting, damage assessment and marine debris response. Sen. Begich recently wrote to the Appropriations Committee requesting inclusion of funds for the tsunami debris cleanup and fisheries disaster funding in the Superstorm Sandy supplemental package ...

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RADIO HOST ON TIM SCOTT: 'BLACK ONLY IN SKIN COLOR'

Tim Scott has been appointed to fill the South Carolina Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Jim DeMint and immediately the racebaiters jumped in with both feet to attack him. One of the early hatemongers was Amos Brown, a host on a religious radio station in Indianapolis, Indiana. Brown used his Twitter account to claim that African American Tim Scott isn't really a black man.

Tim Scott is, of course, a Republican just like Governor Haley who will appoint him to the vacant seat. All one need be is a black man in the GOP and the hatemongers come out in force with their racist name calling and radio host Amos Brown rose early to the rote attack.
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Why Do We Have a 7-Eleven Government?

Since Washington and the mainstream press corps are pretending that our deficit woes are the result of a roughly equal blend of excessive federal spending and insufficient federal taxation, let’s review the evidence. According to official government figures published by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), in fiscal year 2008, the federal government took in $2.524 trillion and spent $2.983 trillion. So the federal government, then under the leadership of President George W. Bush and a Democratic House and Senate, was spending well beyond its means. For every $6 that it had, it was spending a little over $7 — an unsustainable course. At the end of fiscal year 2008, our national debt was a $9.986 trillion (see table S-9) — and rising.

In the 50 months since — again according to official CBO tallies (see here and here) — the federal government has proceeded to make the profligate federal government of 2008 look downright frugal. Over that 50-month span — all of which has coincided with Democratic control of the Senate and the vast majority of which has coincided with President Obama’s control of the executive branch (the House has been split roughly evenly between Democratic and Republican control) — the federal government has taken in $9.365 trillion in tax revenue, and it has spent $14.749 trillion. So for every $7 it has taken in, it has spent a little over $11. 
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Conservative Groups Complain Sandy Aid Bill Contains Unrelated Spending

Conservative groups say the Senate’s $60.4 billion Hurricane Sandy supplemental bill is loaded with millions of dollars in spending unrelated to damage from the devastating storm.

The bill includes $2 million to fix museum roofs in Washington, D.C.; $100 million for Head Start centers; $348 million for damage to parks, including the Statue of Liberty’s island; and $4 million to repair the Kennedy Space Center and other launch sites. It also includes funding for commercial fisheries disasters for as far away as American Samoa.

The Club for Growth announced Monday that it would score a vote for the bill negatively because of the unrelated spending.

“When a natural disaster occurs, there is a textbook response by Congress — they cobble together an overpriced bill that isn’t paid for, there’s no accountability or oversight, and it’s filled with pork. This proposal is no different,” the group said in an alert announcing its decision. 
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Cheerleading Coach Must Register As Sex Offender

A former supervisor for the District's summer jobs program must register as a sex offender for 10 years after she admitted to giving birth to a baby boy fathered by a high school student in the program.

Bowie resident Loni Haggins, 30, who was also a teacher's aide and cheerleading coach at Wilson High School in Northwest Washington, must also complete 100 hours of community service, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

A one year prison sentence was suspended by D.C. Superior Court Judge Russell F. Canan on the condition Haggins successfully complete a year of probation.
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Pocomoke River State Park Hosts Bald Pocomoke River Cruise

Who: Open to the public

When: Saturday, January 12, 19 & 26, from 1 to 3 p.m.

Where: Pocomoke River State Park, Snow Hill

Cost: $20 per person

Contact: Angela Pease, 410-632-2566 x106

Nature-lovers are invited to step aboard the Bay Queen, a 42-foot boat, and cruise along the Pocomoke River for Bald Pocomoke, hosted by Pocomoke River State Park.

The program will take guests on a 2-hour journey along the river’s shoreline in search of the elusive bald eagle. A naturalist will speak about the moving scenery, helping participants identify the eagle and bald cypress plant. The boat will depart from the Shad Landing Marina at 1 p.m. Space is limited so interested participants should call immediately.

Obama Makes New Fiscal Offer; Boehner Says It's Not Enough

President Obama made a new fiscal cliff offer Monday that would ‬raise ‪$1.2 trillion in taxes and lift the debt limit for two years, and Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) rejected it.

‪The president made the offer to the Speaker in a 45-minute meeting at the White House on Monday, in the latest sign of the quickening pace of negotiations to avoid the more than $500 billion in automatic tax increases and spending cuts due in January.‬

‪The new Obama offer lowers the president’s demands for tax increases and includes additional spending cuts, but it falls short of the healthcare savings the GOP wants from reforming entitlement programs like Medicare.‬
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Illegals tab? $1 billion just in Oregon

WASHINGTON – A new study by the Federation of Americans for Immigration Reform reveals illegal aliens in Oregon cost tax payers more than $1 billion annually.

That translates into $700 that each Oregon resident pays for state services to illegal aliens.
 
The study, titled “The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Aliens on Oregonians (2012)”, shows that each Oregon taxpayer must contribute $700 annually to pay for the education costs, English language training, prison incarceration, law enforcement and health care for illegal aliens.
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Let's Get Some Issues Straight Right Here And Now

First of all, to the Salisbury Firefighter/s getting on Facebook and LYING about a 12% City Council pay increase, that is completely untrue.You may wonder WHY some Council Members are not interested in moving Rick Hoppes forward but it's examples just like this that probably stop them from doing so.
It was said on Facebook that the Council voted themselves a 12% pay increase, not true at all. Yesterday the Council brought up this topic, (as they are supposed to do every 4 years) and the Council majority said absolutely not. 
The Council majority went on to say, we'll get a raise just as soon as the REST of the City Workers get their raise. Until then they refused to be any part of a pay increase.
Now, you just take a guess as to who is behind spreading such a blatant lie?
Secondly, a friend called me to tell me that Jonathan Taylor published something yesterday claiming that Councilwoman Debbie Campbell picked up a Mayoral Candidate Packet. IF Debbie Campbell had ANY interest in running for Mayor I would immediately step out of the way. However, that is NOT the case. 
Jonathan Taylor's hate towards Debbie Campbell continues and he'll spread any lie he can to defame her, just as Jimmy Ireton will do. Hang out at the GOB on January 8th Jonathan and get the truth for once in your life. I'll be there.

The Baby Boom And Financial Doom

The American left has trained its sights on a new enemy: Pete Peterson. The banker and private-equity billionaire is, at first glance, an obvious target--rich and Republican. He stands accused of being the evil genius behind all the forces urging Washington to do something about the national debt. "The Peter G. Peterson Foundation is deficit-scold central," writes columnist Paul Krugman.

But for a deficit scold, Peterson does not seem very concerned about today's budget. "The current deficit is not the problem," he told me recently. "I wouldn't enact any measures to reduce it until the economy recovers properly." In fact, he is even in favor of additional stimulus spending, "as long as it's well designed and paid for," he notes. "My overriding concern has always been the long-term outlook, the massive structural deficits that we face as the baby boomers start retiring in large numbers. That's the problem we've simply refused to confront."

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No Springsteen, But Inauguration Will Still Cost

The pomp surrounding the inauguration of the President of the United States can carry a hefty price tag, from the glitzy galas to all those inaugural balls.

Think of it this way: It can cost about the same as 150 Bentley cars, several dozen yachts or some $20 million shy of the cash needed for a Boeing 737.

But taxpayers aren’t on the hook for the fun stuff — the balls and other celebratory events — and this inauguration won’t be as big as the last one for President Barack Obama.
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Kids At Tragedies: Turn Off The Cameras

Whatever the ultimate casualty count at Sandy Hook Elementary School, every student there Friday was a victim. These kids—10 years old, 5 years old—had been through an experience ghastlier than most adults have ever survived.

Minutes after they made it to safety outside the school, having heard and seen unspeakable things, cable, network and local TV crews were waiting to interview them, live on camera, about things a kid should never have to talk about. Flanked by their parents, boys and girls too young to see an R-rated movie described being hustled to safety as bullets whizzed by them in the halls of their school.

It was arresting. It was heartbreaking. And it was rash, unnecessary and wrong. There is no good journalistic reason to put a child at a mass-murder scene on live TV, permission of the parents or not. There’s not even a bad-but-practical reason to do it, beyond getting buzz and adding “color” to a story. No one learned anything they couldn’t have from talking to people off-camera and privately.

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Maryland Releases New Rating System For Schools

Montgomery County students met new performance goals introduced by the state on Monday, which go beyond No Child Left Behind's focus on test scores to measure student growth, graduation rates and progress toward closing the achievement gap for minority students.

But even though Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Joshua Starr said the School Progress Index is an improvement, he said he was still disappointed that scores on the Maryland School Assessments factored heavily into the rating and labeling of schools.

"I appreciate what the Maryland State Department of Education is attempting to do; however, what's not clear to me is the purpose of this approach to accountability," said Starr, who recently called for a three-year moratorium on standardized testing.
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If We Want Gun Control, We’ll Need To Compromise

In the wake of the heartbreaking mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, supporters of gun control have argued that the attack should be a turning point in galvanizing popular opinion against guns — and producing strong gun control legislation.

President Obama declared Saturday that “We’re going to have to come together to take meaningful action” — though he did not provide details. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said that when Congress returns she will introduce a bill to restore the assault weapons ban. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Face the Nation Sunday that “we could be at a tipping point” on gun control legislation.

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MD Police Meet to Discuss Identity Theft

Devices that police call 'electronic pick pockets' are getting smaller and smaller and law enforcement gathered Monday to learn the latest from experts in the field of identity theft.

"They're so small you wouldn't detect them, especially if you don't know what you're looking for," said LifeLock identity theft and prevention expert Paige Hanson.

One skimmer can hold up to 1,000 numbers.
 
A skimmer is designed to steal credit card numbers and can be connected to an ATM machine. Experts said they can even be used by restaurant workers and one 'swipe' of the credit card can steal the numbers. 
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New Insight Into The (Epi)Genetic Roots Of Homosexuality

For an evolutionary biologist, homosexuality is something of a puzzle. It’s a common trait, found in up to 10% of the population. It appears to be run in families, suggesting that it is hereditary, at least in part. And yet it defies the very reason why traits are passed on from generation to generation. How could something that hinders childbearing be passed down so frequently from parents to children?

Researchers at the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) think they may have an answer. It’s not in written in our DNA sequence itself, they suggest, which explains why scientists have failed so far to find “gay genes,” despite intensive investigations. Instead, it’s written in how our genes are expressed: that is, in certain modifications to how and when DNA is activated. These changes can have environmental roots, so are not normally permanent enough to be passed from parent to child. But occasionally, they are.

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Nutter Among Mayors Calling For Tougher Gun Laws

In the wake of last Friday’s school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, Mayor Michael Nutter has joined other Mayors across the country who are calling for stronger gun laws. Nutter, along with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and several others, sent an open letter to President Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress on Monday, calling for tougher gun laws and what they called “a reversal of the culture of violence in this country, a commission to examine violence in the nation, and more adequate funding for the mental health system.”

Read: Full Letter From Mayors Asking for Tougher Gun Laws

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O'Malley Expects Gun Control Debate In Wake Of Connecticut Shootings

Governor Martin O'Malley says he expects to see legislative activity in the week of the mass shooting in Connecticut.

"We can update, change, improve strengthen school security and or gun laws, in order to make children safer," O'Malley told WBAL News in a brief interview in Annapolis Monday.

"You're going to see a lot of bills on those subjects."
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‘I Am Adam Lanza’s Mother’: When Parents Are Afraid Of Their Children

Most parents in the U.S. have spent the past few days imagining what it would be like to be the mother or father of one of the 20 schoolchildren murdered on Dec. 14 in Connecticut. Each detail that emerges from that stricken community brings many of us to tears. And of course we think, What if a madman came to our child’s school in a rage with a gun?

But there’s another group of parents who watched this horror story unfold with an opposite and perhaps more excruciating thought: What if the madman were my child?

Parents of mentally ill children and young adults can’t say they are afraid of their own children or admit that they know what it’s like to have bright children whose rages could, under circumstances they can’t predict, lead them to kill innocent people the way Adam Lanza is alleged to have done at Sandy Hook Elementary. And they can’t find comfort in the wake of a national tragedy by sharing their feelings around the watercooler like the rest of us.

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Md Officials: Fewer Deer Killed During This Year's Firearm Season

Maryland hunters killed fewer deer during this year’s two-week firearm seasonthan last year, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

State officials confirm that there was a 13 percent drop in the number of deer that were killed during this year’s firearm season, which ended Dec. 8.

Brian Eyler, who is the deer project leader for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, said that he was not surprised by the numbers. He told WBAL that various factors may have caused the decrease.
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DNREC Fish & Wildlife Enforcement Blotter Nov. 27 - Dec. 12

Reminder for the week: Boaters need proper gear, safety equipment for winter weather

DOVER – To achieve public compliance through education and enforcement actions that help conserve Delaware’s fish and wildlife resources and ensure safe boating and public safety, DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife Enforcement agents responded to 76 complaints and issued 61 citations between Nov. 27 and Dec. 12. Incidents of particular note included: On Nov. 27, three men were cited in connection with an incident on Delaware Department of Transportation state property in Bear. John R. Hitch, 28, of Townsend was charged with one count each of conspiracy and hunting red fox out of season. Stanley W. Anthony, 59, of Camden, and Michael Gurczenski, 40, of New Castle, were each charged with one count of conspiracy in connection with illegal hunting. The three men pled guilty to the charges in Justice of the Peace Court 11 in New Castle. Hitch paid $148 in fines and court costs, while Anthony and Gurczenski paid $91.50 in fines and court costs. 

On Dec. 10, Clifton F. Coppock, 51, of Dover, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol combined with prescription drugs, driving without a license, driving a vehicle without insurance, making an improper turn and failure to remain in a single lane. Coppock was tested and released pending a later court date.

On Dec. 11, six Fish and Wildlife agents provided visiting representatives from the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago with a tour of critical infrastructure along the Delaware River and C&D Canal aboard the new Enforcement patrol boat MP-Victor. The visitors had attended a conference with DNREC representatives, the National Guard and Delaware State Police earlier in the day.

Citations issued by violation type included the following, with the number of charges in parentheses:

Wildlife Conservation: Trespassing after hours on a state wildlife area (1), consumption/possession of alcohol while hunting on state wildlife area (1), hunting illegally on a refuge (1), damaging state property (6), operating an off-road vehicle without a helmet (1), illegally operating an off-road vehicle on a state wildlife area (1), illegal target shooting on a state wildlife area (1), and hunting red fox during a closed season (1), New Castle County; Operating a motor vehicle off established roadways on a state wildlife area (7), New Castle, Kent counties; Hunting migratory waterfowl without required federal stamp (1), hunting with an unplugged shotgun (2), rallying waterfowl, causing them to fly toward hunters (1), trespassing to hunt (1), late shooting (2), and unlicensed hunting guide service (1), Kent County; Failure to tag antlered deer (1), failure to register antlerless deer as required within 24 hours of harvest (6), failure to tag antlerless deer (6), hunting deer with firearm during archery season (1), hunting with a firearm in a closed area of state forest lands (1),failure to display hunter orange during a firearms deer season (1), allowing shot to hit a building (1), Sussex County.

Fisheries Conservation: Fishing without a license (2), Kent County.

Public Safety/Other: Conspiracy (3), New Castle County; Driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs (1), driving without a license (1), driving a vehicle without insurance (1), failure to remain in single lane (1), making an improper turn (1), criminal trespass (1), lewdness (2), dumping (1), and littering from a motor vehicle (1), Kent County; Loitering (1), Sussex County.

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A Little Good News For Your Day.

Seven Of The Most Striking Ways States Have Loosened Gun Laws

Friday’s deadly rampage at a Connecticut elementary school marked the 13th mass shooting in the United States this year. Among the 11 deadliest shootings in U.S. history, more than half took place in the last five years. During the same period, states have often relaxed their gun laws, making it easier for individuals to obtain guns, extending the places where concealed guns are permitted, or giving gun owners more robust protections.

We take a closer look at some of the more striking measures:
1. Five states allow students to carry concealed guns on college campuses 

A March 2012 Colorado Supreme Court decision held that the University of Colorado could not ban students and employees with state-issued concealed weapon permits from carrying guns on campus. The decision overturned the university’s long-standing gun ban. While school policy prohibits guns at ticketed athletic and cultural events, Boulder and Colorado Springs’ campuses now designate dorms for permit-carrying students. (Guns are still banned in other dorms). “Not a single student has asked to live where guns are allowed,” the Denver Post reported last month.

In September 2011, the Oregon Court of Appeals issued a similar ruling, allowing guns on campuses throughout the Oregon University system.

Wisconsin passed legislation in 2011 allowing college students in the University of Wisconsin school system to bring a concealed weapon on campus grounds, parking lots and “other spaces that aren’t enclosed,” according to the Wisconsin State Journal. The school can prohibit guns in buildings, but only if signs are posted at each entrance.

A law passed by the Mississippi State Legislature in 2011 broadly extended the placeswhere concealed weapons are allowed, including college campuses, secondary schools, courthouses, polling locations, churches, bars and passenger terminals of an airport – places previously off-limits. This year, the University of Mississippi, which previously required students to leave guns in their vehicles, began allowing students to bring concealed weapons on campus, provided they have a concealed weapons permit and take an 8-hour training course.

Utah grants the least discretion: Since 2004, the state has prohibited any public college or university from banning concealed weapons, as campuses are considered state property.

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More Zebra Mussels Found in Upper Chesapeake Bay

DNR calls on boaters and anglers to help prevent the spread of this harmful species

Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) biologists found young zebra mussels attached to buoys off Havre de Grace on December 3. DNR is asking boaters and anglers to be on the lookout for this harmful, invasive mussel.

The biologists collected 20 live zebra mussels attached to the concrete anchor blocks for three channel marker buoys. DNR discovered the mussels when Captain Shawn Orr and the crew of DNR’s A.V. Sandusky pulled the buoys from the water for cleaning and winter storage.

“We know that these mussels are from this year’s spawn since these buoys and anchors were deployed this spring,” said Matt Ashton, a DNR biologist and mussel expert who helped collect the mussels. “We plan to check these and other buoys every fall, as part of DNR’s limited zebra mussel monitoring effort in the upper Bay area.”
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Paying For Lunch – Modern Monetary Theory Style

A common criticism of Modern Monetary Theory is that it is a naïve doctrine of free lunches. The critics grant that a country like the United States, which issues its own freely floating fiat currency, can always make the policy choice to issue whatever quantity of that currency it deems appropriate. The US government can spend as many dollars into the private sector economy as it chooses, without obtaining those dollars from some other source first, and it can always pay any debts that have been incurred by borrowing dollars. But the critics will go on to charge that MMT mistakenly concludes from these few institutional and operational facts that there are no economic limits to the wealth-generating capacities of the government. They caricature MMT as a doctrine of manna from heaven, in which the power of issuing a generally accepted medium of exchange confers the power of conjuring real wealth into existence by prestidigitation. In short, they see MMT as a disordered syndrome characterizing people who are experiencing massive money illusion.

But this criticism misses the mark. MMT does focus a good deal of attention on the monetary system and the banking system, and on the operational mechanisms of public and private finance. But the whole point of analyzing and clarifying the monetary system is to help people see through the glare of the economy’s glittering monetary surface to the social and economic fundamentals that operate below that surface. The point is certainly not to deny real limits on our capacity for economic development and progress, but to correctly identify where those limits lie – and where they don’t. MMT’s criticism of some standard economic and public policy approaches is that the standard discourses sometimes incorrectly locate those limits, and as a result manufacture artificial barriers to progress where none exist.

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Brain Teasers

#1
N N N N N N N
A A A A A A A
C C C C C C C

#2
gesg
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#3
13579 AZ  

Why Homeless People Sleep In The Cold - And Die

You can’t miss them when you walk around a city: shapeless masses pressed up against buildings or into corners. Homeless people sleeping outside, even now when the temperature is cold and dropping. The lucky ones preserve their body heat under a pile of blankets; others make do with cardboard boxes or layers of clothes.

Some die. About 700 a year in the United States. The solution seems obvious: their lives would be saved if they slept in the warmth of a homeless shelter. But there aren’t enough shelter beds to go around, and some of the beds that do exist come with very unappealing strings attached:

1. The “#1 Reason Homeless People Don’t Use Shelters [is the] Lack of Available Beds,” writes formerly homeless Kylyssa Shay. Shelters are over-crowded in many, if not most, cities. People must line up hours before the facility opens to secure a bed for the night, and go through the same process the next day and the next.

2. Those who hold jobs (and many homeless people do) can’t always be in line at 4:30 in the afternoon, so they cannot get a shelter bed. Those who choose to stand in line may give up on finding employment because of the schedule.

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Michigan Republicans Deny Police Officers And Firefighters The Right To Work

That is what the headlines would say if anyone really believed that the anti-union laws passed last week in Michigan actually had anything to do with the rights of workers. When the legislature outlawed contracts requiring workers who benefit from union representation to pay for that representation, it explicitly exempted the police and firefighters’ unions. If this law was actually about the “right to work,” the Republican legislature and Governor Snyder were effective denying the right to work to the state’s police officers and firefighters.

Of course this law has nothing to do with the right to work (RTW), as everyone involved knows; that is just the spin from the anti-labor coalition. This is why police unions and firefighters’ unions were exempted. The Republicans were trying to buy off these workers with special favors, not singling them out for punishment.

There is no issue of rights involved in this dispute. The question is whether workers, through their union, can sign a contract that imposes conditions on employment, just as the employer can impose conditions on employment.

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Sandy Hook And President Obama’s Shared Legacy

According to President Obama, Friday – the day that twenty first graders were gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School – was the toughest day of his presidency. Usually, that’s a sign that a defining moment has arrived.

Our Presidents’ legacies are shaped by how they deal with these defining moments.

For George W. Bush, it was 9/11 – a defining moment he used to encourage Americans to go shopping while their government constructed a massive surveillance state and launched an unwinnable “War on Terrorism” that’s killed hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of people around the world and bankrupted our nation at home.

For FDR, it was the Great Depression – a defining moment he used to pass the New Deal. It redefined capitalism and constructed a “We Society” that cares for the old, the sick, and the impoverished and balanced economic power for workers through federal protection of labor unions.

Today, Bush’s legacy is tarnished and FDR’s legacy is celebrated – all because of how each used their respective defining moments.
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Torture And Violation Of International Law

The European High Court of Human Rights condemned the secret extraordinary rendition programs of former President George W Bush, calling them both torture and a violation of international law. 

The case involved Khaled El-Masri, who was abducted in Macedonia in 2003 and handed over to CIA agents, who tortured El-Masri and locked him up in a secret detention facility in Afghanistan for four months. He was never charged with any crime. The court found that while he was in the custody of the CIA, El-Masri was beaten, drugged, shackled, and even sodomized. Sending terror suspects to third world nations to be tortured in secret facilities was a common practice during the Bush/Cheney Administration. But this ruling by the Human Rights court could bring a lot more accountability to European nations that assisted the United States with extraordinary rendition after 9/11. It's still not too late to prosecute Bush and Cheney for war crimes...even if it's in an international court.

Legalized Marijuana

President Obama has finally weighed in on what he plans to do with Colorado and Washington, now that those two states have legalized marijuana. 

In an interview set to air tonight on ABC, the President said his administration has "bigger fish to fry" than to use his Justice Department to crack down in the states. President Obama said, "It would not make sense for us to see a top priority as going after recreational users in states that have determined that it's legal." The President also said he's willing to have a conversation about changing how strict federal law is in regard to marijuana, now that states are legalizing it. Echoing that sentiment, the top Senator on the Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy, floated the idea of softening federal laws prohibiting marijuana usage. President Obama was an aggressive drug warrior in his first term; let's hope he loosens up in his second term, and helps the states finally put a stake in the heart of Richard Nixon's failed so-called "War on Drugs."

Right To Work

We all now know about Right-to-Work-for-less laws in Michigan, thanks to Republican Governor Rick Snyder and the corporate oligarchs. But, believe it or not, Right-to-Work-for-less may not even be the most radical, anti-democratic law that passed in Michigan this week. Late Wednesday, Republicans in the State House passed a new "emergency financial managers" law, which allows Rick Snyder to take over an entire city and appoint his cronies as mini-dictators who can fire all the local elected officials and take the reins of looting that city. The new law will allow Governor Snyder to break union contracts, slash budgets, and sell off parts of the commons to for-profit corporations. This is a radically anti-democratic law, and it's already been put in place in mostly-minority, cash-strapped cities like Benton Harbor, Ecorse, Pontiac, and Flint. But what's even more radical, is that just last month on Election Day, voters repealed Snyder's emergency financial managers law. Voters said, "no way!" and the law was kaput. So in response, and in a huge slap in the face to voters, Republicans just passed the law again this week. Governor Snyder claims the law is new-and-improved to address voter concerns. But the incoming Democratic House Minority Leader called the legislation a "mirror image" of the law that was repealed in November. Snyder thinks that by just changing the name of the law, he can send his mini-dictators back into the field, to take over more of Michigan's cities against the will of the voters. The Republican overreach in Michigan is unprecedented. A movement of working men and women must respond and make sure Republicans are never again given power in the Wolverine State.

Today's Advertiser Of The Day 12-19-12

Today's Advertiser Of The Day 12-18-12

Important Quote

“We must reject the idea that every time a law’s broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker.
It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions.”

President Ronald Reagan

Bob Hope Christmas

Guest Post: Hey You

“A really efficient totalitarian state would be one in which the all-powerful executive of political bosses and their army of managers control a population of slaves who do not have to be coerced, because they love their servitude.” – Aldous Huxley – Brave New World [15]

The world makes less sense every day. Little children are randomly slaughtered in their schoolrooms. Predator drones roam the skies over foreign countries exterminating bad guys, along with innocent women and children (collateral damage when it occurs in a foreign country). Drugged up mentally ill kids with no hope and no future live lives of secluded quiet desperation until they snap. Ignorant, government educated, welfare dependent drones with no self respect or respect for others, assault, kill and rob within their government created urban jungles. Sociopathic criminals who committed the largest financial crime in world history walk free and continue to occupy executive suites in luxury office towers in downtown NYC, collecting millions in bonuses as compensation for crushing the American middle class. Academics, whose theories have been thoroughly disproven, continue to steer our economy into an iceberg while accelerating the money printing and debt issuance that will sink our ship of state. Corrupt, bought off politicians pander to the lowest common denominator as their votes are only dependent upon who contributed the most to their election campaigns, which never end. Delusional, materialistic, egocentric, math challenged consumers (formerly known as citizens) live for today, enslave themselves in debt, vote themselves more entitlements, and care not for future generations. The alienation and isolation created by our sprawling, automobile dependent, technology obsessed, government controlled, debt financed society has spread like a cancerous tumor, slowly killing our country.

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A Message From Santa To Joe

Click HERE to see the video Santa sent Joe

Woman Dies From Injuries Sustained In November 17 Crash In Kirkwood

Location: Howell School Road, west of Red Lion Road (St. Rt. 71), Kirkwood, DE

Date and Time of Occurrence: Saturday, November 17, 2012, at 3:44 p.m.

Operators and Vehicles:
Operator 1: James A. Zerillo, 53, of Bear, DE (properly restrained, not injured)
Vehicle 1: 2010 Chevrolet Silverado
Passenger 1: 49-year-old male from Bear, DE (properly restrained, not injured)

Pedestrian: Caroline Morris, 79, of Kirkwood, DE (deceased)

Resume:
Kirkwood - The Delaware State Police Collision Reconstruction Unit is investigating a November 17 crash that claimed the life of a Kirkwood woman.

At approximately 3:44 p.m., Caroline Morris, 79, was crossing from the north side to the south side of Howell School Road, immediately west of Red Lion Road (St. Rt. 71). She was struck by a 2010 Chevrolet Silverado that was backing out of the parking lot of the Oceanmart Deli, which is at the intersection of Howell School Road and Red Lion Road. The Silverado was operated by James A. Zerillo, 53, of Bear.

Morris was transported to Christiana Hospital by ambulance, where she remained until she was pronounced dead on December 4. Zerillo and his 49-year-old male passenger were both properly retrained and not injured.

Zerillo was cited at the scene for inattentive driving. The Collision Reconstruction Unit continues to investigate this incident.

Bravest’s New Squeeze: Strangle-Case Transgal

Now they’ve both been acquitted of throttling transsexuals.

Kinky FDNY hunk Taylor Murphy, who successfully fought off felony strangulation charges brought by his jealous, blond, pre-op transsexual ex-girlfriend, is now dating another woman wannabe with a far more serious strangulation on her rap sheet.

Brunette pre-op transsexual Wanda Batista, 32, was all smiling and supportive of Murphy as she walked arm-in-arm with him at Manhattan Supreme Court last week, batting her eyelashes and calling him her “giant teddy bear.”

But in December 2004, the towering Batista was tried on charges she had fatally choked her transsexual pimp — and in a bizarre karmic twist, Batista was acquitted by a Brooklyn jury, just as her beefy fireman would be in Manhattan eight years later.

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TROOPERS CHARGE DAUGHTER OF ELDERLY CAROLINE CO. MAN WITH HIS MURDER

(RIDGELY, MD) – Maryland State Police have arrested and charged the daughter of an elderly Caroline County man found dead in his home yesterday evening with his murder.


The victim is identified as Arthur Cohee, who turned 90 yesterday, of the 12000-block Ridgely Road, Ridgely, Md. Cohee was pronounced dead at the scene.

The accused is identified as Janice C. Cohee, 58, who lived with her father at the same address. After consultation with the Caroline County State’s Attorney, Janice Cohee was charged early this morning by State Police homicide investigators with first and second degree murder, first and second degree assault, manslaughter, and reckless endangerment. She was taken before a court commissioner for an initial appearance and ordered held without bond at the Caroline County Detention Center.

Shortly before 6:00 p.m. yesterday, the Caroline County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call from a woman, later identified as the accused, who said her father was dead. Deputies responded to the residence and found Janice Cohee sitting outside. They found her father in a chair in the kitchen, with obvious trauma to his head and neck.

Sheriff Randy Bounds requested the Maryland State Police Homicide Unit conduct the investigation. Homicide Unit investigators responded and were assisted throughout the night by investigators from the Sheriff’s Office, the State Police Easton Barrack, and State Police crime scene technicians.

After obtaining a search warrant for the residence, investigators and crime scene technicians processed the scene for evidence. Interviews were conducted with Janice Cohee, as well as neighbors, relatives, and others.

The preliminary investigation indicates Janice Cohee told police that two men had broken into the home seeking money and had assaulted her father, while she hid in another room. Investigators determined that account not to be true based on evidence found at the scene and on Janice Cohee, as well as conflicting information provided to police.

Items were found during the search that have been forwarded to the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division laboratory to determine if they may have been used in the assault on the victim. The victim’s body was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death.

A motive remains unclear at this time. The investigation is continuing.

Today's Survey Question 12-18-12

Do you still subscribe to magazines.

If so, which ones?

Sweet Mama Dog Interacting With A Beautiful Child With Down Syndrome

A Letter To The Editor 12-19-12

Where is daily times located at now? I'm tired of these freaking newspapers in my driveway. I'm gonna go throwit in their driveway.

A Letter To The Editor: UMES

This is a touchy subject, but I would like to know how a college can order shirts with the saying " The Blacker the College, The Sweeter the Knowledge " on it? I mean the white race has been portrayed as being racist, not allowed to do anything. The race war will never stop as long as the other side is allowed to shove it in your face and nothing be done. How can a University be allowed to let this happen? If this is not reverse discrimination, what is?

Obama Caught Fake Crying

Md. Issuing Fewer Speeding Tickets In Work Zones

Speeding tickets issued to motorists in work zones in Maryland appear to be down significantly in 2012 compared with last year.

A review of state data by AAA Mid-Atlantic shows that by the end of November, the state had used mobile speed cameras to hand out more than 365,000 tickets in work zones.

In 2011, nearly half a million tickets were given to speeders in work zones.
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A LITTLE GUN HISTORY

In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control. 

From 1929 to 1953, about 20 million dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated

In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.

Germany established gun control in 1938 and from 1939 to 1945, a total of 13 million Jews and others who were unable to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated. 

China established gun control in 1935. From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated 

Guatemala established gun control in 1964. From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. 

Uganda established gun control in 1970. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. 

Cambodia established gun control in 1956. From 1975 to 1977, one million educated people, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated. 

Defenseless people rounded up and exterminated in the 20th Century because of gun control: 56 million. 

You won't see this data on the US evening news, or hear politicians disseminating this information. 

Guns in the hands of honest citizens save lives and property and, yes, gun-control laws adversely affect only the law-abiding citizens.

Take note my fellow Americans, before it's too late! 

The next time someone talks in favor of gun control, please remind them of this history lesson. 

With guns, we are 'citizens'. Without them, we are 'subjects'.

During WWII the Japanese decided not to invade America because they knew most Americans were ARMED!

If you value your freedom, please spread this antigun-control message to all of your friends. 

SWITZERLAND ISSUES EVERY HOUSEHOLD A GUN!

SWITZERLAND'S GOVERNMENT TRAINS EVERY ADULT THEY ISSUE A RIFLE. 

SWITZERLAND HAS THE LOWEST GUN RELATED CRIME RATE OF ANY CIVILIZED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD!!!
IT'S A NO BRAINER!

DON'T LET OUR GOVERNMENT WASTE MILLIONS OF OUR TAX DOLLARS IN AN EFFORT TO MAKE ALL LAW ABIDING CITIZENS AN EASY TARGET. 

Spread the word everywhere you can that you are a firm believer in the 2nd Amendment!

It's time to speak loud before they try to silence and disarm us.

You're not imagining it, history shows that governments always manipulate tragedies to attempt to disarm the people~

CALIFORNIA BLOAT

Gee, I wonder why California is the most screwed up state in the union (other than Illinois), unless you’re a parasite government worker. Despite being bankrupt, state employees had a 100% pay increase since 2005, and psychiatrists there make more than $800,000 per year. Unions are killing California, just like every other state, business, and products (that are still produced here). But it’s okay, they are raising taxes (voter approved) to pay for life guards and firemen to make $150,000 per year and retire at 50.

“As California goes, so goes the U.S.”

The old adage is correct. In our new socialist America 2.0, it pays, and pays big to be part of the Politburo, a union party member. You can make more than you ever imagined, never have to work hard, and can’t be fired. Taxpayers have become comatose victims, while 30 million government drone parasites suck their blood. Soon, it will be gone. Someday, austerity for public employees.

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School Named In Honor Of Murderer

An elementary school has been named after an infamous murderer believed to be one of the first gangsters in California – infuriating some parents and law enforcement officers.
The Alisal Union School District in Salinas agreed to name the new school in honor of Tiburcio Vasquez – who was eventually hanged for killing at least two people in the nineteenth century.

Superintendent John Ramirez defended the board’s decision telling Fox News that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.

“Tiburcio Vasquez, along with others, was an individual who was a revolutionary,” Ramierz said. “He was not okay with the oppression.”

Vasquez “was probably the most notorious bandit California ever saw,” according to the University of Southern California library. He was 14-years-old when he committed his first crime – stabbing a constable.

In 1875 Vasquez was convicted of two murders and subsequently hanged. Other historical records indicate he may have killed as many as six people – including a law enforcement officer.

“He took from the rich and gave to the poor,” Francisco Estrada told KION. “He was your inspiration of Zorro.”

Estrada sat on the naming committee for the new elementary school and said the convicted murderer was a good man who should be a model to the youth of East Salinas.

He said Vasquez was simply misunderstood.

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Changes In Federal Acquisition Environment Taking Toll On Vendors

If there was ever any question about the course correction the federal contracting market has been going through over the past three years, a new survey from Grant Thornton puts it all to rest.

Government contractors say they are making less money than at any time in the last 18 years, including 56 percent of the respondents revealing they made less than 5 percent profit off their government contracts in 2012.

Grant Thornton's 18th annual study of the government contractor industry details the impact of the changing federal procurement environment.
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ONE PEDESTRIAN DIES AND ANOTHER INJURED WHILE ASSISTING A MOTORIST WITH A DISABLED VEHICLE

(Joppa, MD) – A pedestrian was killed and a civilian worker with the Maryland Transportation Authority Police was injured while assisting a motorist on the shoulder with a disabled vehicle.
The deceased victim is John Scott, 54, of the 2700 block of Laurel Valley Garth in Abingdon, Maryland. Scott responded to the scene as a good Samaritan to aid the motorist with a flat tire. He was driving a Chevy S-10 pickup and parked in front of the disabled vehicle on the shoulder of northbound Route 152, where the incident occurred. 

The second victim is identified as Walter Feick, 41, of the 1900 block of Bennett Road in Aberdeen Maryland. Feick is a Vehicle Recovery Technician with the Maryland Transportation Authority Police and was on duty at the time of the incident. He was driving a Dodge pickup truck and also responded to the scene to help. He was transported by ambulance to the R Adams Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore where he remains in stable condition.

The identities of the two others involved in the crash are being withheld due to the ongoing investigation. These identities include the operator of the vehicle with a flat tire and the operator of a vehicle that lost control and slid into the disabled vehicle.

Just before 9:30 a.m. today, Maryland State Police from the Bel Air Barracks were dispatched to the scene of a traffic crash on the northbound shoulder of Route 152 in Joppa, near the I-95 southbound ramp. The preliminary investigation indicates a motorist operating a 2004 Pontiac, four door passenger vehicle pulled onto the shoulder of Route 152 after experiencing a tire blowout on the drivers side of the vehicle.

After parking the disabled vehicle about ten to fifteen feet off of the roadway, the motorist called Scott for assistance. Scott arrived close to the same time Feick arrived to the scene. Together, they began working to replace the blown out tire.

For unknown reasons at this time, a motorist driving a 2001 four door Volkswagen exited from the I-95 southbound ramp onto Route 152, heading northbound when she lost control and skidded into the disabled vehicle. Police believe Feick and Scott were on the driver’s side of the vehicle working on the tire and the owner of the disabled vehicle was in the backseat at the time of the incident.

The owner of the disabled vehicle and the operator of the Volkswagen refused medical treatment at the scene. Scott was pronounced deceased at the scene and Feick was transported by ambulance with non life threatening injuries.

Troopers from the Bel Air Barrack and JFK Highway Barrack responded to the scene. Sheriff Deputies from the Harford County Sheriff’s Office also responded. Personnel from the State Highway Administration assisted with traffic detours. The ramp from southbound I-95 to northbound Route 152 was closed for three and half hours.

Troopers from the Bel Air Barrack will lead the investigation as it continues.

4th Best

Obama, 4th best president ever.

I was just reading that after less than 4 years,

Obama has been rated the 4th best president ever:

Reagan and 9 others tied for first, 

15 presidents tied for second, and

18 other presidents tied for third. 

Obama came in fourth.

GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY TO HOST YEAR-IN-REVIEW DISCUSSION

Governor to discuss 2012 challenges and successes

ANNAPOLIS, MD - TODAY, December 18th at 10:30 a.m., Governor Martin O’Malley will host a media roundtable discussion on 2012’s challenges and successes.

The O’Malley-Brown Administration has an ongoing commitment to tracking progress and delivering results. From creating jobs, expanding opportunity and protecting the dignity of every Marylander to the 15 strategic goals used to measure progress, the Governor will take an in-depth look at the year and the opportunities ahead.

For a video on accomplishments, click here.
WHAT: Governor O’Malley to host end-of-year media roundtable

WHEN: TODAY, Tuesday, December 18th at 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: Governor’s Reception Room
2nd Floor, State House
Annapolis, MD

2 More Md. Counties Get Disaster Aid for Sandy

HAGERSTOWN, Md. - The Federal Emergency Management Agency has added Carroll and Montgomery counties to those designated for disaster aid stemming from Superstorm Sandy, Gov. Martin O'Malley said Monday.

The additions leave Baltimore County as the only jurisdiction not included in FEMA's Public Assistance Grant Program. The program partly reimburses state and local governments for expenses related to public works and services. Examples include damaged public buildings and roads, debris removal, search-and-rescue operations and overtime pay.
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WICOMICO COUNTY EXECUTIVE RECEIVES SPECIAL FRIEND OF MAC AWARD

December 17, 2012 – Today, Peggy Bradford, Executive Director of the Maintaining Active Citizens agency, or MAC, Inc., presented Wicomico County Executive Rick Pollitt with the ‘Special Friend of MAC’ award during their Board meeting. This award is given to an individual or organization that has made significant contributions to area senior programs. This year, the selection committee chose Executive Rick Pollitt.

“As an aspiring senior citizen, I am especially honored and humbled at being chosen a friend of MAC. Many of our older neighbors, having devoted their entire lives to family and community, should be able to approach these special years with confidence and well-being. Those of us who have been the recipients of their efforts over the years now owe it to them to help secure the necessities and comforts they have earned. We are blessed on the Lower Shore to have a strong, vibrant senior community and I am determined to do my part to support them,” said County Executive Pollitt.

“Truly, Mr. Pollitt is a special friend of MAC and we are proud to add his name to our award plaque to be proudly displayed in our offices,” said Peggy Bradford, Executive Director of MAC, Inc.

With over 25 years of service to the community’s elderly, Executive Pollitt has made a significant impact on aging services. Early in his career in the 1980’s, Pollitt served on the Somerset County Commission on Aging and as an officer on the MAC Board of Directors, shepherding these organizations during their early growth. While employed as the Town Manager for the City of Fruitland, Pollitt stepped in when the Meals on Wheels van was stolen. He provided MAC with a surplus vehicle from Fruitland so there would be no interruption in meal delivery.

During his campaign for the newly created position of Wicomico County Executive, Pollitt cited 5 goals of his “Building Bridges – Building Community” initiative. One of those goals was to insure that Wicomico County had a senior center facility to replace the outdated and dilapidated 85-year old facility at Pine Bluff. True to his word, upon election Executive Pollitt began working with MAC to identify and obtain funding for this project. Through his efforts, County general fund appropriations and Community Development Block Grant money totaling $900,000 was appropriated for the new Salisbury-Wicomico Senior Services facility.

Wicomico County Executive Rick Pollitt has continued to provide funding in each year’s annual Operating Budget for the Meals on Wheels program and has publicly proclaimed that he would shield the Meals on Wheels program from funding reductions because of the critical nature of the program.